Last week, the S&P 500 Index closed above the 1,900 mark for the first time ever on the back of strong home sales data and an increase in Hewlett-Packard’s share price despite its announcement of more job cuts. Here are Bidness Etc’s top five stocks to watch today

Last week, the S&P 500 Index (SPX) closed above the 1,900 level for the first time ever, after home sales numbers beat analysts’ estimates and shares of the Hewlett-Packard Company (HPQ) rose despite expectations of a decline. Our pick of stocks that are worth watching today comprise Intuit Inc. (INTU), Pfizer Inc. (PFE), Hi-Crush Partners LP (HCLP), JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd. (JKS), and AutoZone, Inc. (AZO).
Intuit, which provides financial management solutions for accounting professionals and financial institutions, is buying bill payment service Check Inc. for $360 million. Check’s smartphone app is used by more than 10 million people to pay their bills. The company’s revenues are expected to increase to $20 million in fiscal 2014 (FY14) from $15 million last year. The deal’s transaction value to revenue multiple is 24x – a premium of more than 1,163% to the average size of deals in the industry.

Pfizer dropped its $120 billion bid for AstraZeneca plc (ADR) (AZN) as the British pharmaceutical did not accept the offer before the Monday deadline. According to the UK’s takeover rules, Pfizer can make another takeover bid in six months. If the deal had gone through, it would have created the largest pharmaceutical company in the world, and would likely have been the biggest deal in the industry for at least a few years. Both companies are expected to face declining revenues, as many of their drugs’ patents will expire in the years to come.